Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1887-07-12
NEW YoRE ,July IL


dren. When of Karen Island, enroute for
Canarsie, the yacht cspsized, and only thir.
teen of the forty souls, comprising her pas
sengers and crew are known to have been
rescued
The party which was involved in this terri
BILE disaster was made up chiefly of German
families, resident in Brooklyn and Long
Island City. They had gone to Cansrsie BY
the early trains and hired two yachts, the
Mystery ahd Christlsna, TO take them to
Ruffie Bay. The fathers of several of the
families preferred to remain about Canarsie,
which accounts to some extent for the pre-
boats had carried cut plentiful supply of
beer, which vas served freely.
The sun was just sinking when the passen-
gers of the Mystery and Christiana gathered
on the pier to embark for Causrsie. Many OF
the men of the party showed the effects of
the beer they had drunk, and the shippers
thought it best to put the women and children
aboard the Mystery, which was a cabin yacht
forty feet long and much safer boat than
the Christina, The women protested when
they learned that Captain Heudrckson and
his nine year old son were all the men aboard
Their protest went unheeded and Hendrick-
son became 80 angry that some of the pas
sengers noticed that he also had been drink
ing too much.
The Mystery had its load swung of from
the Ruff Bar pier at seven O'Clock. very
brisk west by north wind VA fair on her
quarter aud the Yacht started with her main
sail sinp a fpd ShA At ipp in H., tor
AMI did not make as good time as Captain
Hendrlckson desired
The Christiana was swinging out into the
Mys ery's wake when Hendrickson said in
the hearing of some of the woman who were
rescued, that he was going to get to Canarse
first or elbow "a stick out" He then gave
orders to his son, his only crew, to get ready
to shake the reef out of the sail. Mrs. Swift
zer, OF Green Poin,, made most earnest pro-
test against more sail as the boat was already
keeling over in way that frightened the
women almost into Mysteries Many Others
Joined in the protest but Hendrickson de-
clared that he could sail the Mystery through
gale, and persisted in his order
The reef knots were unfastened and the
boom dropped just as squall Of considerable
velocity struck the sail. In sailor parlance
it knocked the yacht down in second. She
was on beam ends and all the people who
were on deck were struggling in u chop sea.
The catastrophe was witnessed from the
tug J. c Dean, who was then over two miles
away from the unfortunate yacht. Captain
Rowe of the tug called for all the steam that
could be crowded on and ran to the rescue.
For five minutes the yacht remained on
her beam ends and the shrouds and bulwarks
afforded some hold for the struggling people.
The scramble for place to hold was awful.
Fully halt of the drowning people were chill
dren, from babes in arms to six years old
The mothers made frantic efforts to get their
little ones to where they could hold on to a
rope or spar and help themselves One sf
ter another they were swept off in the tide
way and, buoyed by their clothing, their
hands moved in frantic and unavaiing ap-
peals for help.
Some time before the Dean got near enough
to be of use, Legro put out from Barren
Island in row boat, and was the first to aid
the drowning people Just as he laid his
hands upon the nearest person the yacht went
down with lurch and all of her that was
shown above the water was her topmast, .he
water being dotted with half drowned moth
ers still holding to their children. The ne.
gro seemed endowed with superhuman
strength and know ledge of what was best to
do. Those who wers past helping themselves
he dragged into the boat, the others he lashed
to the gunwales. Altogether he saved seven
lives.
When the Dean arrived few of the vic
tins were still on the surface As she neared
the scene woman was seen trying to buoy
up her child. A man on the guards of the
steamer suddenly exclaimed, "My God, that
is my wife !" and dived to her aid The wo
man had already lost her grip on the child,
| and was about sinking when he reached her.
He had the choice of saving her or his child,
and he chose the wife. He and she were
| soon drawn on board the Dean but the child
| sank before their ewes.
The next men grappled woman of middle
age, but she died of exhaustion few min
utes after she was brought aboard the tug.
A child and another woman also died after
they were taken out, but five were rescued
alive. The Dean then took aboard the seven
who had been saved by the negro.
1t was nearly dark when the tug arrived at
Canarsie with her load of dead and halt
drowned passengers. Perhaps thirty of the
five hundred persons on the beach were rela
tives of tine people who had sailed to Ruff
Bar in the morning. They were already
anxious at the DELAY. The wall tnat went up
when the catastrophe vas told was heartrend
ing. Every one of the rescued persons had
left one or two, and in one case, three chill
dren in the water, and they passed from the
apathy of half consciousness into wild by
sterics.
Then the husbands, coming in from fishing
ard learning of the disaster and how they
mad been bereft of wife and children, became
wild in the first agonies of their bereavement
No one seems to know what became of Capt.
Hendrck son or his boy. 1t is likely that the
latter was one of the first drowned, Hen
Erickson was not seen after the catastrophe.
The skipper of the Christiana seemed TO have
been stricken with incompetency. Instead
of crowding on all sail and making every
effort to get to the rescue as soon as possible,
he lowered sail when still several hundred
feet away from the wreck. His boat was
then caught in the tide and drifted so far
away that he could not get up in time to be
of any service.
AS many of the people Of the picnic had
little acquaintance with each other it is diff
cult to arrive at the extent of the casualty or
the names of all those drowned. Mrs. Law
enburg of No. 566 Grand ST., Brooklyn, lost
both of her children, aged two and four years.
Patrick Grimes losthis wife and two children,
aged three years and three months. Capt
Hendrickson and his nine-year-old son are
among the missing. John Switser lost two
children but saved his wife. Mrs. Myerbang
was identified by her husband, who is . yacht
sailor At Canarsie. She died soon after being
A.